Muni Tests New 3-Slotted Bike Racks In Pilot Program

During the next two months, cyclists will see three-slotted bike racks on certain Muni bus lines, SFMTA announced this week.

Current racks only hold two bikes, but as cycling has become more popular, bicyclists frequently find racks full, forcing them to wait for another bus.

An empty three-bike rack. | Photo: SFMTA

"Combining bikes and Muni is a popular, efficient way to get around," the agency wrote on its blog, "It's so popular, in fact, that once your bus arrives, both slots on its bike rack might be full at times."

Muni is testing the new racks to see how they would affect service for operations, said SFMTA spokesperson Ben Jose. The agency would consider the pilot successful if riders consider them "intuitive and easy to use" and if more people use the racks for their first or last mile of a trip.

"Long story short: we want more people to see that there are more options to get around, and better integrate Muni and bikes," he told Hoodline.

To educate riders on how to use the three-slotted bike racks, SFMTA released this video:

While the new racks are similar to the two-slotted ones, SFMTA noted that there are two main differences.

Riders will secure the front wheel to the rack by cranking a handle instead of pulling a spring bar. The bikes also face different directions, which are marked on the racks.

If the pilot is successful, SFMTA may replace the current two-bike racks with the new ones fleetwide. While the models currently meet state requirements for its standard 40-foot buses, the transit agency is also pursuing state approval to install them on its longer 60-foot buses.